Times are tough
First, we couldn’t find the winter jackets. Then, when we did find them (in a box in the garage, goddammit), several items (including a few handknit items) had been chewed to pieces by a mouse who is clearly going to have a very warm and fluffy nest this year. Apparently, mice prefer 100% natural wool, no superwash, thanks. So everything that could get thrown in the washing machine did and things that couldn’t, went to the drycleaner. And other than a few things including a pair of gloves and a nice little mini-poncho I’d knit for Helena, in the end, all was relatively well.
But the lack of cold weather fostered our denial for so long that our younger child has nothing to put on her feet but white sandals (and a pair of sneakers which she can’t get on herself, which drives me crazy). So she’s running around the neighborhood in a silk shirt, a shirt, a dress, a cardigan, woolly tights and — white sandals. It might be time to go shoe shopping.
It’s also time to make some heavy drapes for the doors because our next door neighbor dropped by yesterday and gloated (in a cheerful, neighborly way) about our impending heating-bill shock. How bad could it be? Let’s just say that he laughed when I admitted my worst fears and tripled the number I thought we could not possibly exceed. I’m still reserving hope because we have the thermostats between 63-65 for the day (as we have done for years) and drop ‘em to 58 at night (which is going to start even earlier now). But oh boy. I’m still scared.
Time to start knitting more sweaters. Seriously.
Last year I was wishing I was more like Dorothy Parker.
58 at night? I’m impressed.
Mice do have good taste. When we moved from an apartment into our last house, we had to store books temporarily, and mice got into them. They only chewed up old, rare, hard to find, sometimes irreplaceable books. The good news was this meant none of mine were eaten, but we lost a few from a collection of Mark Twain that would be very expensive to replace.
Equally painful, I’m sure, when it’s something handmade.
I wear sandals until it’s either snowy (where I used to live – doesn’t snow here) or so ridiculously cold I can’t stand it (probably not happening here either). Nothing wrong with sandals in the winter, if she doesn’t mind.
Good luck on the heating bill.
58 sounds boiling to me. We work on Celcius, so I’m guessing it’d be down near 0?
What sort of heating do you have? Three years ago I put in gas central heating, and in the beginning of July (ie winter) it broke. Angry? I was in meltdown mode, especially when I found out that the repairman was booked out for 7 weeks. Yes.
I’m guessing Melbourne doesn’t get as cold as where you are (where are you?) but it still gets bloody cold. Luckily a friend had 2 electric heaters, one a radiant and one a blower.
My electricity bill for that quarter was HUGE. I had to have a glass of wine and a lie down….
(Well, any excuse for a glass of wine!) Good luck with your heating bill.
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could get past that damn electric bill?
Our house is well over a hundred and there are drafts. I’m hoping my hot flashes help me keep warm this winter. That and some well fashioned polar fleece.
Not sure what kind of heating you have. Whether it’s heat pump (electric) or gas/oil, check to see if the company has a program for you to pay an average monthly sum year-round. You’ll pay a little more in the summer when you use less and a little less in the winter when you use more.
My guess is that 63-35 is at least 5, if not closer to 10, degrees cooler than most people set their thermostats, so maybe the shock won’t be as bad as you think.
You can also close off rooms you’re not using, to keep usage down even further, if you have such things.